Lincoln assassin's brother was 'like De Niro'

Thursday

Mar 16, 2017 at 9:00 AM

Remember actor Edwin Booth? Yeah, probably not. Babson’s Sorenson Center for the Arts in Wellesley hosts world premiere of Commonwealth Shakespeare Company’s production of "Our American Hamlet,' a new play that details Edwin’s attempts, post-assassination, to reclaim the family name.

He saw this coming. Born in 1833, Booth spent his life making a name for himself as the most respected and successful actor in American history. When it comes to money and fame, Booth was Robert De Niro – maybe bigger. But while De Niro made his fortune in films great and bad, Booth garnered wealth and acclaim for his stage performances of some of William Shakespeare’s most complex characters, including Romeo, Iago and Hamlet.

Ironically, a theater would also be the site of Booth’s fall from grace.

On the night of April 14, 1865, at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., Edwin’s brother, John Wilkes Booth, shot President Abraham Lincoln in the back of the head, leapt onto the stage of the theater proclaiming “Sic semper tyrannis” (“Thus always to tyrants”) and fled into the pages of infamy, dragging the family name with him.

“Edwin was horrified at what John did to the family legacy,” says Steven Maler, the founding artistic director of the Commonwealth Shakespeare Company. “Edwin was desperate to claw back the family name and restore some dignity.”

So Edwin would probably be thrilled with “Our American Hamlet,” a new play that details Edwin’s attempts, post-assassination, to reclaim the family name by returning to the stage. The world premiere of the play, directed by Maler, runs March 23 to April 2 at the Sorenson Center for the Arts, at Babson College, in Wellesley.

Written by Jake Broder, who also performs a role in the play, “Our American Hamlet” begins backstage, where Edwin waits nervously to make his first stage appearance since the assassination.

“He doesn’t know if the audience will embrace him or shoot him,” says Maler. “Edwin’s friend is desperately trying to get him to escape out the back of the stage in order to avoid a violent night in the theater.”

From there, the meticulously researched play – “a pithy 80 minutes,” says Maler – episodically tells the tale of the Booth family. Complex relationships emerge, starting with the dad, Junius, who helped build an acting empire with his children, but also left them with scars that never healed.

“The father was quite a towering figure and quite a difficult man,” says Maler. “He was a heavy drinker who was quite possibly struggling with mental issues. He may have been self-medicating with alcohol. He was also on the road a lot, which added to the strain and struggle.”

Both Junius and John Wilkes were also actors, but Edwin was the star. At the height of his success, he was the Civil War-era equivalent of a multimillionaire.

The only thing that may have been more impressive than Edwin’s staggering wealth was his talent. He is credited with ushering in a new era of acting, less arched, less bombastic than his predecessors (including his father), more in line with the naturalistic style that’s now the norm. Edwin is still regarded by some as the greatest actor in American history.

But all that disappeared in a flash. After the assassination of Lincoln, Edwin, a Unionist, disappeared from the stage for many months. He made his return in January of 1866, playing his signature role of Hamlet.

“To him, it was worth risking his life to reclaim the family name,” says Maler, describing the actor, who didn’t know if he’d be cheered or shot. “And that’s what he was doing when he took the stage.”

The ironies and metaphors abound: A theater, the place where the Booths built and then lost their legacy, might be the site of their resurrection. The assassination of a country’s leader is the event that triggers the action in both “Hamlet” and the Booth family’s downfall. On stage, Edwin and John performed together in a production of “Julius Caesar,” a play about an assassination and its ramifications.

Maler responded to all these theatrical flourishes, and more, the first time he read “Our American Hamlet.”

“I was just totally enthralled with it,” he says. “I was struck by the humanity of the characters. That’s what’s so great about Shakespeare as well – he tells these great human stories in the midst of this elaborate political tapestry.”

The world premiere of a play about a fascinating American family? Check. An accomplished playwright/actor (Broder) who you may have seen on HBO’s “Silicon Valley”? Check. But Maler thinks he’s also got another great reason to attend: parking. “Our American Hamlet” marks the next step in Commonwealth Shakespeare Company’s partnership with Babson College. Performances at the Sorenson Center in Wellesley provide easy access for local patrons who usually need to drive to Boston to see professional theater.

“Suburban audiences don’t have to travel all the way into the city,” says Maler. “They can just pull into a parking space and watch some great theater.”

Great plays make you think, and Maler says “Our American Hamlet” offers lots to ponder.

“Most people don’t even know Edwin existed or that he was the most famous actor in America,” says Maler, pointing out that, conversely, John Wilkes Booth remains a household name. “The play asks us: Who do we remember? And why?”

Alexander Stevens is a freelance writer and frequent arts contributor. Follow us on Twitter @Wickedlocalarts.

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